If you’re reluctant to seek treatment, confide in someone about what you’re going through, whether it’s a friend or loved one, a teacher, a faith leader, or someone else you trust.

He or she can help you take the first steps to get successful bulimia treatment.

Helping a loved one with bulimia symptoms

If you think a loved one may have symptoms of bulimia, have an open and honest discussion about your concerns.

You can’t force someone to seek professional care, but you can offer encouragement and support.

You can also help find a qualified doctor or mental health provider, make an appointment, and even offer to go along.

Because most people with bulimia are normal weight or slightly overweight, it may not be apparent to others that something is wrong.

Red flags that family and friends may notice include:

Constantly worrying or complaining about being fat

Having a distorted, excessively negative body image

Repeatedly eating unusually large quantities of food in one sitting, especially foods the person would normally avoid

Not wanting to eat in public or in front of others

Going to the bathroom right after eating or during meals

Exercising too much

Having sores, scars or calluses on the knuckles or hands

Having damaged teeth and gums

Causes

The exact cause of bulimia is unknown.

There are many factors that could play a role in the development of eating disorders including…

biology

emotional health

societal expectations and other issues.

Risk factors

Factors that increase your risk of bulimia may include:

Being female. Girls and women are more likely to have bulimia than boys and men are.

Age. Bulimia often begins in the late teens or early adulthood.

Biology. People with first-degree relatives (siblings, parents or children) with an eating disorder may be more likely to develop an eating disorder, suggesting a possible genetic link. It’s also possible that a deficiency in the brain chemical serotonin may play a role. And, being overweight as a child or teen may increase the risk.

Psychological and emotional issues. Psychological and emotional problems, such as anxiety disorder or low self-esteem, can contribute to eating disorders. Triggers for bingeing may include stress, poor body self-image, food, restrictive dieting or boredom. In some cases, traumatic events and environmental stress may be contributing factors.

Media and societal pressure. The media, such as TV and fashion magazines, frequently feature a parade of skinny models and actors. These images seem to equate thinness with success and popularity. But whether the media merely reflect social values or actually drive them isn’t clear.

Sports, work or artistic pressures. Athletes, actors, dancers and models are at a higher risk of eating disorders. Coaches and parents may inadvertently raise the risk by encouraging young athletes to lose weight, maintain a low weight and restrict eating for better performance.

Complications

Bulimia may cause numerous serious and even life-threatening complications.

Possible complications include:

Dehydration, which can lead to major medical problems, such as kidney failure

Heart problems, such as an irregular heartbeat or heart failure

Severe tooth decay and gum disease

Absent or irregular periods in females

Digestive problems, and possibly a dependence on laxatives to have bowel movements

Anxiety and depression

Misuse of alcohol or drugs

Suicide

Diagnosis

If your doctor suspects you have bulimia, he or she will typically perform:

A complete physical exam

Blood and urine tests

A psychological evaluation, including a discussion of your eating habits and attitude toward food.

Your doctor may also request additional tests to help pinpoint a diagnosis, rule out medical causes for weight changes and check for any related complications.

Criteris For Diagnosis

For a diagnosis of bulimia, the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5), published by the American Psychiatric Association, lists these points:

You recurrently have episodes of eating an abnormally large amount of food ― more than most people would eat in a similar amount of time and under similar circumstances, for example, in a two-hour time period

You feel a lack of control during bingeing, such as how much you’re eating and whether you can stop eating

You get rid of the extra calories from bingeing to avoid weight gain by vomiting, excessive exercise, fasting, or misuse of laxatives, diuretics or other medications

You don’t have anorexia, an eating disorder with extremely restrictive eating behaviors

The severity of bulimia is determined by the number of times a week that you purge.

Even if you don’t meet all of these criteria, you could still have an eating disorder. Don’t try to diagnose yourself — get professional help if you have any eating disorder symptoms.

Treatment

When you have bulimia, you may need several types of treatment, although combining psychotherapy with antidepressants may be the most effective for overcoming the disorder.

Treatment generally involves a team approach that includes you, your family, your primary care doctor or other health care provider, as well as a mental health provider and a dietitian experienced in treating eating disorders. You may have a case manager to coordinate your care.

Psychotherapy

Psychotherapy, also known as talk therapy or psychological counseling, involves discussing your bulimia and related issues with a mental health provider. Evidence indicates that these types of psychotherapy help improve symptoms of bulimia:

Cognitive behavioral therapy to help you identify unhealthy, negative beliefs and behaviors and replace them with healthy, positive ones

Family-based therapy to help parents intervene to stop their teenager’s unhealthy eating behaviors, then to help the teen regain control over his or her own eating, and lastly to help the family deal with problems that bulimia can have on the teen’s development and the family

Ask your mental health provider which psychotherapy he or she will use and what evidence exists that shows it’s beneficial in treating bulimia.

Medications

Antidepressants may help reduce the symptoms of bulimia when used along with psychotherapy.

The only antidepressant specifically approved by the Food and Drug Administration to treat bulimia is fluoxetine (Prozac), a type of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI), which may help even if you’re not depressed.

Nutrition education and healthy weight

Dietitians and other health care providers can design an eating plan to help you achieve a healthy weight, normal eating habits and good nutrition.

If you have bulimia, you may benefit from a medically supervised weight-loss program.

Hospitalization

Bulimia can usually be treated outside of the hospital. But if you have a severe form and serious health complications, you may need treatment in a hospital. Some eating disorder programs may offer day treatment rather than inpatient hospitalization.

Treatment challenges in bulimia

Although most people with bulimia do recover, some find that symptoms don’t go away entirely. Periods of bingeing and purging may come and go through the years, depending on your life circumstances, such as recurrence during times of high stress.

If you find yourself back in the binge-purge cycle, “booster” sessions with your health care providers may help you weather the crisis before your eating disorder spirals out of control again. Learning positive ways to cope, creating healthy relationships and managing stress can help prevent a relapse.

Alternative medicine

Dietary supplements and herbal products designed to suppress the appetite or aid in weight loss may be abused by people with eating disorders. Weight-loss supplements or herbs can have serious side effects and dangerously interact with other medications. If you use dietary supplements or herbs, discuss the potential risks with your doctor.

I will be posting something important about mental illness every day throughout the month of May on my blog in honor of Mental Health Awareness Month.

Please keep visiting my blog My Loud Bipolar Whispers and look for statistics or other beneficial information related to mental illness to increase awareness, educate, reduce mental illness stigma and reduce suicides. It is crucial and imperative for all of us to get involved and save lives.

So, please visit my blog every day, but especially every day throughout the month of May.

Thank you. Hugs and blessings to all of you always and forever.

Advertisements

Share this:

Like this:

Published by myloudbipolarwhispers

It is my passion in life to help others in as many ways as I can. I want to share my story to help others know they are not alone and to increase awareness and educate about bipolar disorder, PTSD and all mental illnesses. I also want to reduce the stigma of mental illness and the stigma associated with suicide and to prevent suicides and save lives.
I have given many presentations to share my story, inspire others, increase awareness, educate and reduce the stigma of mental illness and suicide. I have given presentations at a local University, spoken as a certified NAMI presenter and spoke to police officers and social workers for their Crisis Intervention Training. I have also been interviewed by our local newspaper and news station to share my story.
I want to be a voice for the many people that cannot speak up for themselves. I want to make my voice heard loud and strong for many to hear and learn from and prayerfully be inspired from.
I have written one book titled "My Bipolar Memoir of Poetry and Hope" which is a compilation of my many poems and prose to share my story and journey of living, surviving and thriving with bipolar disorder. My book is full of honesty, sorrows, loss, resiliency, perseverance, encouragement, love, faith and hope. You can buy my book online on at Lulu.com, Amazon and Barnes and Noble. I hope you like it.
My first book is like a prequel to my upcoming, real and entire memoir of my story and journey of my life living with mental illness. I am in the process of writing my new memoir. My story will have parts of my journal entries I have saved for over 25 years. It is difficult to remember exactly the way you were feeling during your darkest hours after your light is shining again. So, my journal entries will help convey my pain, sorrows and true feelings my bipolar 1 disorder and PTSD caused during my darkest hours. But, just like my blog, my memoir will also prayerfully encourage and inspire others to know that there is always hope for a brighter tomorrow, day, future and life.
God has saved my life numerous times and he continues to love me and save my life. He is always with me through all of my struggles, holding my hand and catching all my tears. There is always hope and recovery is possible. I am living proof of that. We must always have faith and hope...
View all posts by myloudbipolarwhispers